What a 24 hours it was for Houston high school sports, yesterday.
State volleyball turned to playoff football turned back to State volleyball.
It all started with Fulshear volleyball, who tipped off the day in the Class 5A UIL State Final Four against a tough Lucas Lovejoy.
The Chargers were swept in the Semis, but… the silver lining is this. Bailey Warren is a junior. Lauren Witte is a junior. Avery Pruitt is a junior. Sydney Black is a junior. Yosola Adeleke is a juinior. You get the picture – Fulshear will be back here next season. Stamp it.
Phones were buzzing during the first halves of the football playoffs.
News was breaking that super-team Grand Oaks volleyball was down 2-0 in sets in the State Semis. What? The Grizzlies were loaded and had been dominant all season with only one loss.
Back they roared as Grand Oaks stormed back to win a 5-set instant classic over Prosper – 26-28, 12-25, 28-26, 25-22, 15-12.
“We hadn’t been in a 5-set match all year, why not in the State Semifinal?” coach Morgan Rogers said. “We just stayed in the moment and believed in each other. We stayed positive and invested in each other. Jaela (Auguste) just took over in the fifth set and stepped up big. Audrey Terry and Brooklyn Sheridan settled in setting, and we made adjustments on the outside. It was a full team effort.”
The Grizzlies will now face off against fellow Houston contender Cinco Ranch tonight at 5 PM to determine who will be crowned the UIL State Champion for Class 6A.
Back to football.
What a night.
In Class 6A DI, Cy-Fair would take Katy to overtime and upset the Tigers, 28-21, behind the quarterbacking of Trey Owens (UT-commit), who went off all night. The Bobcats will face North Shore Friday at NRG Stadium, who beat Clear Springs. North Shore QB Kaleb Bailey suffered a leg injury during the game but should be fine for this week's game.
Photo Gallery from North Shore vs. Clear Springs
Matthew Ogle (VYPE)
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Matthew Ogle (VYPE)
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Matthew Ogle (VYPE)
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Lamar would be challenged by Ridge Point all night but he HISD power program would advance, 31-28, and will face Atascocita, who ran away from Pearland, 61-35.
The Woodlands would need a two-point conversion and a last-second blocked field goal to send Klein Collins packing, 28-27. The Highlanders will face Duncanville next week.
Westfield outran Klein Cain, 55-41, in a wild one and will play the winner of Waxahachie and Rockwall.
In Class 6A DII, Stratford, Summer Creek, Hightower and CE King all advanced and will play each other in that order. In Region II, Willis kept their historical season going beating Tomball Memorial. They will play Desoto next week.
In Class 5A DI Region III, it was a weird night. Houston reps Angleton, Fulshear, Magnolia and Magnolia West wrapped up their seasons with losses. In Region II, Barbers Hill lost a heartbreaker to Highland 48-47 in overtime.
On the flipside, Lake Creek and Randle advanced in Class 5A DI Region III with wins over Crockett and Belton, respectively.
As the night wrapped up, we bounced back to volleyball.
With Grand Oaks advancing to the State Finals, it was Cinco Ranch’s turn to make it an all-Houston final. That they did as the Cougars took down San Antonio Harlan 20-25, 25-21, 25-22, 25-21. Led by junior setter Kassidy O’Brien, the Cougars navigated their way to the finals, which will be played at 5 pm today.
What a day to remember as Houston won the night in the state of Texas.